Were you one of the true believers who tipped an Eels victory over the Panthers?
Such faith defied the team’s awful result against the Cowboys and the demands of playing four games over just 18 days. Expecting a win against the undefeated premiers, on their home turf, was surely illogical.
Consequently, the question of the team’s head space, the value of taking games to Darwin, and the finalisation of the Eels roster are at the forefront of my thoughts this week.
There were also some interesting takes to come out of that Panthers clash, including a gang tackle technique and the actions of one of Penrith’s more controversial players.
Staying with that game, a particular conversion attempt from Mitch Moses attracted the attention of some supporters so that too is up for discussion.
Are you ready for a carry? Bumpers up!
Playing Those Mind Games Together
Like it or not, the proof of “headspace” being the final frontier for the Eels has surely been provided by the last month of football.
The fluctuating form from the Tigers, Knights, Cowboys and Panthers clashes has had pundits one moment writing off Parra’s chances and then nek minnit installing them as genuine contenders.
One of the more extraordinary features of the poorer performances is how many players have been below their best in such matches. When the team is “off”, it’s almost across the entire side. Lost possession, missed tackles, ill discipline – the errors seem to be shared equally and that’s not a beautiful thing.
The positive was that virtually every player rose to the occasion against the Panthers. Having all players fulfil their role is not unusual in any impressive victory, but in this instance it provided more evidence of Parra’s mind guerillas at work. Change towards achieving potential is there, but it’s an ongoing battle.
If any of us had the answer to Parra’s fluctuating form, we’d probably be on staff and on good coin.
What we do know is that at their best, the Eels now have the capacity to beat the leading premiership contenders. This opinion isn’t based on one off performances. The trend against the Storm and Panthers is there for all to see.
Should the Eels succeed in narrowing the gap between their best and their worst, then all of us will have genuine cause to believe that a premiership is finally within reach.
A Dar-Whine
I’ve waited for the dust to settle before offering a deeper dive into the Eels trip to Darwin.
Firstly, there are no excuses for what we witnessed from the team. The Eels were awful. The Cowboys were outstanding.
With that made clear, my main take is that the partnership needs to be reviewed.
Undeniably, there are numerous positives in partnering with the Northern Territory Government for an annual match. It’s commercially rewarding for both parties, and there’s plenty of goodwill as well as differences made by the community visits.
That aside, the Eels are in the football business. On field success drives greater commercial success.
This places the club at the crossroads regarding the value of this annual trip.
Three of the Eels last five clashes have involved the Cowboys. The only losses suffered by the Eels in Darwin came in two of those matches. A glance at the scoreboard from those defeats reveals similar results – 32 to 6 and 35 to 4.
That’s no surprise. As Cowboys winger Kyle Feldt stated after the match, “it felt like a home game.”
Why wouldn’t it? The warm humid conditions are similar to Townsville and the local supporters clearly have an affinity for the closest NRL team.
Does it seem like the NRL are possibly locking in the Cowboys as the annual opponent?
That would be easy to say, but it’s not so simple.
TIO Stadium (image NT News)
There are many stakeholders when it comes to the draw. The NRL and the broadcasters have their say. Likewise, the NT Government and Parra would be putting forward their preferences.
It’s obvious that the Eels would prefer a non-Sydney opponent. The interstate and regional teams bring fewer fans to CommBank Stadium, whereas local metro opponents increase the likelihood of large crowds at Parra’s home base.
A quick run through of the eight matches in Darwin reveals only one match against a Sydney team – the Panthers in 2015.
Outside of that, the Eels have played the Cowboys three times, the Raiders twice, and the Broncos and the Titans once each.
It doesn’t take Einstein to work out that the NT Government would prefer matches against Queensland teams. The fixture wouldn’t just draw travelling Eels fans. Travel is more convenient for banana benders and there’d be stronger local interest. The NRL and broadcasters would probably be on board with that too.
Though a commercial partnership like the one with the Northern Territory is clearly too good to pass up, what cost is the club prepared to pay?
The conditions are sapping for the players. Sweat was pouring off them from the opening whistle and the Eels fatigued badly in the final minutes of the game.
No other team would be as suited to playing at TIO Stadium as the Cowboys are. We should expect better performances from our Eels, but why make their task tougher by literally taking a home game to an opponents back yard?
My concern?
The Cowboys are now over represented in the list of opponents at this venue, even factoring in the preferences of stakeholders. A Cowboys team on the rise is arguably the least preferred team for the Eels to draw in Darwin.
And given that Parra are in the business of football, if they are regularly placed in a scenario which makes it more difficult for the team to secure two premiership points, then maybe the arrangement needs to be reviewed.
SLAC
Over the years, the Storm have been the “innovators” of tackling techniques. From the early stages of the wrestle through to the various techniques introduced, other teams would always be playing catch up.
Wider application of such techniques across the NRL would ultimately lead to injuries and rules would be changed to outlaw said tackles. But Melbourne had that uncanny ability to stay one step ahead in finding something new.
Not now.
The Panthers have become masters of SLAC – Stop, Lift And Carry.
SLAC in action (image Fox Sports)
This method is at maximum effectiveness deep in the opponent’s half. Multiple Penrith defenders stop the ball runner, lift them, then carry/drag them back up to ten metres.
At the moment, SLAC allows the Panthers to win the territorial advantage as their opponents struggle to get beyond the 30 metre line before kicking. It’s a huge reason that Penrith have conceded an average of just 12 points per game.
The tackle is permitted because the ball carrier isn’t quite lifted off his feet. However, the ball carrier is clearly put into the position where he has no traction and is completely overpowered.
Given its “legality”, other teams will be sure to adopt it sooner rather than later. I can envisage certain scenarios eventuating.
Firstly, the risk of injury will be greater as more players will be subjected to this tackle by teams attempting a quick copy. And it is dangerous as ball carriers are put into awkward positions and driven backwards with the weight of multiple defenders on them.
Referees will then be under increasing pressure to make a quicker call of held, a consequence that would possibly impact second phase football.
Finally, it will all become a mess and the tackle will be outlawed. Sounds familiar doesn’t it!
But my concern runs deeper than any familiar pattern.
It’s patently clear that this is a drilled tackle, and to have this as an organised tactic could threaten the fabric of the game. The SLAC method might provide fuel to the fire for proponents of limiting the number of defenders in a tackle to two.
I won’t begin to dive into the ramifications of trying to limit the number of defenders in a tackle – other than to say heaven help the NRL if they ever tried to adopt such a rule.
Penrith’s Weak Link?
Penrith should have lost no admirers from their loss to the Eels. The key to their success is their on-field leadership and football intelligence, with Cleary and Yeo two of the smartest and most focussed players running around.
They transition with near perfection between structured and unstructured footy, and the exuberance of the younger players sees them willing to back themselves to score from anywhere on the field.
If they have one weakness, I believe it is the poor discipline of Jarome Luai. I don’t like to single out a player for criticism, but his deliberate actions are worthy of a spotlight.
Luai (image credit Panthers)
Luai’s off the ball interference on Mitch Moses in last year’s final should have been penalised. It should have also resulted in a stint in the sin bin and potentially a finals exit for his team.
On Friday night he decided to target Reed Mahoney. His first half rag doll tackle and throw on Mahoney after the Eels hooker had passed the ball was penalised, but only because of Reed’s reaction.
Later in the second half, Luai got away with pushing and rubbing Mahoney’s head into the turf as Reed attempted to get up to play the ball. It could easily have brought a set restart call.
Such tactics stand out in a quality side such as Penrith. They don’t need it, and should Luai continue down this path, it could come at a cost in a big match.
The Panthers five-eighth has been fortunate thus far, but his actions won’t go undetected by on-field officials for much longer.
Finalising The Roster
The Eels have moved cautiously in finalising their top 30 this season, with only 28 spots filled.
NRL rules stipulate that a minimum of 28 players must be named by March 1, but clubs have until the first Monday in August to list their last two additions to the roster.
From next week (Round 11), clubs can select any development contract or second tier contracted players.
Given the Eels recent difficulties in fielding outside backs, it will be interesting to see whether the club moves any time soon to secure external recruits.
The imminent return of a number of players lessens the pressure placed on the roster, and probably buys more time for the club to wait to see which players become available.
Parra signalled that intention by not elevating any players outside the top 30 into the NRL squad. I supported that decision as every player becomes available come round 11.
Are there any outside backs currently available that have attracted serious interest from the Eels?
If there are any players that the Eels could secure, every passing week presents an increasing opportunity cost.
Firstly, other clubs could become involved in the battle for a signature, increasing competition and possibly price. Secondly, the later a player is added, the more challenging it is to settle into the team, build combinations and learn plays.
Go now or wait? I guess we have to watch this space.
Also On The Watch List
In recent years, I’ve noticed that players are often taking their conversion kicks much wider than the spot where the ball was forced for the try.
It happens with enough frequency across the NRL for myself and others to notice, and more recently I’ve had fellow supporters highlighting examples involving the Eels.
One such example occurred on Friday night.
Clint Gutherson scored the Eels first try about a metre or so in from the corner.
When the conversion kick was taken by Moses, the ball was placed just inside the touch line. In this instance, the kick was taken only about half a metre wider, but that could make all the difference.
We aren’t aware whether this was the result of the match official indicating the wrong spot or whether Moses prefers to take the wide kicks close to the sideline as some sort of practiced reference point.
Maybe this is something to monitor across Magic Round.
Eels forever!
Sixties
Agree about Darwin, especially if the NRL is going to schedule the game in April instead of June or August like it used to. It’d be interesting to see if it is driving membership numbers at all, but surely the club isn’t as hard up for cash as it was in 2014 when it first signed the deal and even an interstate team could draw 18,000+ to CommBank going by recent numbers.
Gol, if we make commercial decisions which could negatively impact football results then it’s time to review them. If we are going to regularly draw the best suited team to Darwin, or if the players are reporting that the match is a major struggle every year – should they be put through it?
Tks sixties. Every now and again the issue of a sport psychologist comes up. We have one but we don’t is the way it seems to go. If we do, are they ingraining a tailored program or just turning up to conference type days with off the shelf hits of ‘the power of positive thinking’, ‘team first’, ‘leadership matters’ delivered by someone who doesn’t know what it is like to be smashed by Junior, or, heaven forbid, Kane Evans. The All Blacks have the former,and seems to work.
BDon, I think it comes back to the senior players. The Roosters recruited Cooper Cronk as their missing nerdiest and I would argue that it was his mindset that they were after. They even played him in a grand final with that split shoulder blade just to have his composure and guidance on the field. Look at the performances since he retired.
Sixties, the topic deserves more than I’m capable of on a keyboard. Stephen Edge , another great example. If it comes back to the senior players, based on our inconsistency, we appear to need some type of remedial action.
I think we have improved because our leadership has matured. Do they need to fight their way to a title to take them to the next level as leaders, or do we need their leadership to take another step (or another player) to get that title?
Good to know I’m not the only one who noticed the goal kicking placement. It’s nit picking I know but that stuff matters in semis . I’m sure the technology is there to help the ref point out the spot then.leave it up to the kicker if he wants to take it wider .
That lift tackle is a perfect way for the defence to nullify the start of sets after a kick we need to do it aswell
In one of the earlier games this season Mitch was told to move the ball further out by the referee
Saw that but that was relatively close to the posts wasn’t it?
i do wonder whether kickers like reference points. They practise from certain parts of the field so maybe they prefer to be near lines? But there are many instances where this occurs.
Scott, it has definitely been a technique noticed by other clubs and is certain to be copied by others.
Great post sixties, nothing but thought provoking areas of interest.
The Rif #6 needs very much to be monitored owing to his grub plays, what I notice with him and his tactics is how he sets a target on a set player, & generally waits until the opponent is pretty much obscured by the touch touch, the blocking of Mitch last year is a classic in that area, where he basically shepherds Mitch until he ends up being taken out, by that time the touch judge has past that point and running with the ball player.
Similar tactics are used by him on the basis of disrupting the support player. Problem can be readily solved by the bunker having a button call of an illegal play, that takes out a player that is running in support of his team mate/player with the ball.
The lifting tackle with multiple players involved should have the old rule returned that makes the attacking ball player having a held call made as soon as that player is frog marched, with feet on the ground, the way the tackle/run is made by the tacklers holding the player with the ball down with sufficient amount of weight/force needs to be called as held, and he regains the spot where the held call is made.
I agree that the Darwin games should be played on a rotation based rather than just one team being there each year. Whether playing the game in late July rather than at this time of the year would be more suitable given the climate problems.
Cheers Colin. The reality was that Luai would have gotten away with the tackle on Mahoney had Reed not reacted. If Luai is resorting to these tactics to get a reaction, maybe he should be accommodated? The thing is, his actions when investigated are easy to penalise, so I wonder whether a controlled reaction is perhaps a viable response?
Agree 60’s, I actually wonder if Luai is pretty much a sleeper in his position, which was on show against the riff on both occasions with the eels.
I choose not to watch certain clubs play these days, except when playing the eels, that especially applies to the Riff. With all the said rule changes, I see no change in the way the game is now refereed as players can pretty much hide themselves in the game especially when defending, on the side and in the gang plays.
The touchies rarely go infield for a report except to perhaps back up the ref in the game. I have wondered for years now what is their role in the game, except for the above or behind the goal posts for kicks. For me I am actually wondering if the game was not better when we had two onfield refs.
Here’s a frightening though Colin – finding enough whistle blowers to cover each round if we used two per game.
Our mental fluctuations are not recent, they have dogged us for seasons. Surely the coaches must ram it in to them to stay focused. Penrith have pushed the boundaries considerably, they appear to be allowed to.
They aren’t only recent but we have improved our capacity to beat the best of the best. I reckon Luai pushes those boundaries far more than any other player.
Without making excuses for the players inconsistent form it is not unusual when a squad is down on numbers.
Last year for example the Roosters had a number of injuries and their form was also inconsistent. Like you I picked the Eels to win. However I got the margin wrong, I said 6 points.
If the Darwin game is to continue because commercially it is irresistible, then it needs to be staged in the winter and a team other than the Cowboys.
The SLAC tactic has in my opinion already begun to effect the offload. I am noticing now that when a player tries to unload in these circumstances the referees are pulling it back and making them play the ball.
They are not so quick to act on defenders. In my view they should call held once forward progress has been halted.
The halting forward progress concept should be re-introduced. It just sort of disappeared from the game. Maybe some leeway for a one-on-one tackle(like the stripping rule). Near the sideline needs some thought as well.
True BDon, we’ve had teams completely lift ball carriers off the ground near sidelines and get away with it.
John I didn’t delve into scheduling but again this comes down to the input of stakeholders. I just think that this year has highlighted the footy downfall in taking a home fixture so far away from home.
I have never understood why we keep playing NQ in Darwin. It’s crazy, and we are basically giving them a home game, only to play them a second time in Townsville. I agree that we need a stronger voice in this matter, or look elsewhere to take a regional game to.
Longfin, it absolutely comes back to the influence of all stakeholders. And if the schedule is going to semi regularly feature an opponent who most benefits from playing there, it’s time to walk away.
Great read Sixties.
Narrowing the gap between our winning and losing performance would be an assignment the coach must be losing sleep over. Along with our missed, ineffective tackles..
Playing Cowboys in the NT definitely not an advantage in those conditions let’s have a better variety of opposition up there.
Panthers tackling is a concern for all the reasons you mentioned. The Storm practiced hundreds of times their tackle which caused injury to Alex McKinnon…it still happened with all that practice.
On the trainer in the goal kick. Its the on-field referee that controls all kicks. If there’s an issue it’s a fault of the referee. If you look at most kicks this year there is a lot of moving that wasn’t there in years gone by. Especially penalty kicks. The Panthers trainer stopped the game last year and there was less outrage from the NRL media.
Thanks again Sixties looking forward to beating the Roosters.
Go Eels!!
Cheers Pete. On a scale of impact, Murf running where he did had zero impact on what happened, whereas the Panthers trainer stopped all of the Eels momentum. Like you, I get the need to fix potential future issues but I don’t get the outrage.
I don’t believe that Cleary actually seen Murph dash across. He had his head down sighting the ball.
Bit of a Storm in a teacup
100%! A huge difference between that and the Riff trainer incident in 2021.
I don’t believe any home games should be taken away from ticketed supporters. It’s like a slap in the face. I have no issues taking blockbusters to Homebush to accommodate the extra supporters. But ticketed fans should get best seats. If we make a $1mil in Darwin….. It would cost an extra $30 per member to have that game brought home. I also do not see a need for member packs … Apart from Juniors members. The hats only for kids heads and I don’t think I have ever brought a scarf to a game. I assume there would be a hearty saving there as well. Clubs which are so called big…. Don’t take games home games away. #allhomegamesathome
10YM I think all clubs in the top 4 take games away. Also when you buy your season tickets you know that a game is being taken to Darwin.
For me personally I hope we never take another game to Darwin. Give me Commbank anytime
True John. The cost of the home ticket is reflective of, yet still a good deal for, the number of games at CommBank. If we staged the Darwin game back at Parra I believe the cost of the season ticket would rise commensurate with the value of an extra game.
10 year, the member pack is revisited every year. I’m like you. I don’t need a pack – I’m only interested in the ticket. But there are many others who feel differently and that’s why there is a yearly review. All clubs do similarly and I truly believe that the backlash would be enormous if member packs were taken away.
i don’t have any details but I’m going to try to find out the bottom line difference between an extra home game at CommBank and taking a game on the road.
Sixties initially we were getting a $1 million for the one off game. But that included a number of clinics and a trip to Alice?
Seems a shorter trip now . Based on that the new deal with the new government may not be as generous.
Yes, you’ve now made me curious.
I picked Parra last week. Just had a feeling…… we can match it with the big teams. Just gotta be consistent. Interesting read re the Darwin game. Surely taking on the titans, Canberra, or Newcastle up there would be a better fit.
How good reading TCT and listening to the tip sheet at the airport, bound for magic round. Boom!
If I said you were living your best life doing that, it might appear to sound egotistical of me! 😃
Wouldn’t it be good if you caught up with Mitch at Magic Round. He tells me that all the cool people are heading there.
Your comments on Luai are bang on. He is always getting into opposition players faces and he is fast becoming known simply as a grub. He’s one of those players you feel like reaching through the TV and landing one. Karma will catch up I’m sure.
Also on the Penrith tackling technique, I am actually impressed by it. Yes it can be dangerous, but it is so effective at nullifying opposition progress. Last year they were big on dragging players back whilst on the ground, but the method now of holding them up has improved on it. I’m not saying they should be getting away with it, but you have to tip your lid to them and the way they execute it.
Still hate Panthers though!
I’m a bit on the fence for the Darwin game. Having been to one, it is a great weekend away, but selecting Cowboys as an opponent is ludicrous. I just wish they put it back on the June long weekend.
I’m impressed too – hence why I believe it will be copied by every other team. And once that happens, you’ll get injuries etc.
Given that opponent selection is both out of our control, yet still not random, the die seems to be cast that the Cowboys are a highly preferred selection by other stakeholders. Hence the need to review the value of the partnership.
I once heard an explanation from the Eels administration that they submit a list of teams to the NRL suggesting who may be an appropriate opponent in Darwin and the NRL then choose a side.
From the Eels point of view they chose teams that did not draw at home games. This was very early on in the deal.